Home is where the Heart is
by The-Gryffindor-Student
Summary: Victoire Weasley and Teddy Lupin started going out at the beginning of the summer. However, as Victoire enters her final year of Hogwarts, she must learn to cope with this painfully difficult long distance relationship.
1. Journey Away from Home

**I do NOT own any of the characters or locations created by JK Rowling**

**Chapter One: Journey Away from Home**

As she delicately pulled her lips away from his, their eyes met. When she looked into his ocean-blue eyes, a complex set of emotions could be seen through his simple exterior. He gently stroked her elegant long blond hair which felt like silk between his fingers. It glistened in the beaming sunlight while it lay in perfect arrangement on her head. After creating a mental image of the moment, she slowly backed away from his gentle touch. She boarded the train as he watch with heart wrenching sadness. They waved their final goodbyes and the train began its eight hour journey away from London.

Victoire Weasley spent the last five hours staring out her window into the fields of endless space. Her last words had been "I love you" and they were directed towards Teddy Lupin.

Since the beginning of their romantic relationship in June, Teddy and Victoire spent nearly every waking moment together. The announcement of their romance came as quite a surprise to everyone. They have always been close friends and no one expected their friendship to become anything more. Furthermore, their family and friends were very supportive of them,

"What about you, Victoire?" she quickly snapped out of her sustained daze.

"What?" said Victoire in deep confusion. Saying goodbye to Teddy was one of the hardest things she ever had to do and she continued to relive the last moment they spent together in her head.

"Are you taking potions this year?" Adalyn repeated in slight frustration. Victoire hasn't said a word to them since they got on the train.

"Oh, yeah I am," she replied in an unusually distressed tone.

"Great! That makes all three of us," Adalyn said cheerfully, referring to herself, Victoire and their friend Emma.

"I know this must be hard to you. Long distance relationships are never fun. But you can make it work. Write to him as much as possible and before you know it you'll be on your way home for Christmas break," Emma saw how much emotional pain Victoire was in and attempted to comfort her. She saw a slight look of relief emerge on her face.

"Plus, this is your final year. After this year you can see him as much as you want. You just have to hold on a little longer," Adalyn further explained. The two girls could see that their goal of comforting Victoire had been achieved. A small grin appeared across her face as she took a deep breath and said, "Thank you. You're right, we can make this work. Teddy spent his first two years at Hogwarts without me and he wasn't here last year. But we still remained close friends because we continued to write to each other. I guess it will just take some dedication." this is the most Victoire has spoken all afternoon. She finally felt convinced that their relationship had a chance of working.

"So..." Victoire quickly looked towards the entrance of their compartment. "Will we be hearing wedding bells soon?" she sighed in annoyance. James had a special talent for interfering with other people's personal lives.

"Go away James, this is none of you business," Victoire rolled her eyes and was tempted to abuse her privileges as head girl by punishing him, but decided against it.

"But it's Emma and Addy's business?"

"They're my best friends," Victoire stated a true fact. After all, they have been friends since year one.

"Okay, that makes sense. I'm only your cousin. I've known you since the day I was born and we belong to the same family. But you know... they're your friends..." a hint of sarcasm was suggested in his voice as he continued on his mission to irritate his older cousin.

"Leave! Now!" Victoire was beginning to get very frustrated with James. However, he simply smiled and said, "Fine, I'll leave. Just remember to send the wedding invitation to Grimmauld Place," with that he left, sliding the compartment door shut.

"Sometimes I wish my grandma only had one child," she said after James was out of sight. Having nine cousins and two siblings was very frustrating at times, especially since she was the oldest. But Teddy was there to help her through the tough times.

The remainder of the ride was slightly more enjoyable for Victoire. She finally felt relaxed and was excited to begin her last year at Hogwarts. She realized it was not beneficial to dwell on the negative aspects of a long distance relationship, but to focus on a solution that will help with their situation.

The sun set over the horizon as the enthusiastic atmosphere of the train increased rapidly. Soon after the sky had settled to a dusky blue, with light only visible from the brightly-lit moon and the abundance of glistening stars, the train came to a gradual halt. The doors opened and students began filtering out. Victoire stepped out onto the platform and smelled the fresh air that surrounded her. She looked up at the distant castle which was lit up like a Christmas tree. It was unreal. A long distance relationship was not going to be easy. But with a little time and dedication, it can be successful.


	2. It's Good to be Back

**Chapter Two: It's Good to be Back**

When Victoire woke up the following morning, she looked up at her four poster bed and smiled to herself. The previous day had worn her out. After stressing out about leaving Teddy, travelling eight hours on a train and with the excitement of the first night at Hogwarts, a goodnight sleep was very beneficial for her. She was looking forward to beginning her final year at Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

"Are you coming down for breakfast, Vic?" Victoire didn't even notice that she was the only one still in bed. She looked at her watch then back at Adalyn.

"Yeah. You girls go ahead. I'll meet you down there in a few minutes," Victoire responded, making her way out of bed. Her friends nodded politely and left her alone to get ready.

She hurriedly put on her Ravenclaw uniform as a question came to mind. Why were her and Dominique the only two kids in the family to be in Ravenclaw? The others were in Gryffindor. She searched her mind for an answer and settled on the fact that they must have inherited many of their differences from their mum. She shrugged and quickly moved onto her hair. Ever since she turned seventeen she used magic to do her hair. This was a big relief for Victoire as the long blond silk that hung halfway down her back was getting very frustrating to style the muggle way.

She surveyed herself in the mirror than headed down to the great hall for breakfast. When she got there she attempted to find her friends though the masses of students in the largely crowded room. The first years were looking overwhelmed with excitement and eager to start their first day of classes, yet nervous at the same time. The older students were talking amongst themselves and getting reacquainted with their classmates. Some of them were even rushing to finish their summer homework. After minutes of analysing the crowd, Victoire spotted her friends sitting at the far end of the Ravenclaw table.

"Good morning," Victoire said as she sat down with Adalyn and Emma. A look of slight surprise appeared on their faces when they saw her.

"Well someone is in a good mood today!" Emma stated the obvious. It was evident yesterday that Victoire wasn't in a particularly enjoyable mood. Her drastic change in attitude took the girls by surprise.

"Why shouldn't I be? It's a beautiful day out and not to mention it, our last year at school," Victoire realized that a permanent smile was etched upon her face. She didn't care though; she was truly delighted to be back at school. Her friends decided against questioning her sudden change in personality and the three of them enjoyed their first breakfast of the school year. A delicious combination of bacon, eggs, toast and pumpkin juice was enough to get them through the entire day. She looked around at the hundreds of energized students as she immersed herself in the exciting atmosphere. "It's good to be back," she thought.


	3. First Day Chaos

**Chapter Three: First Day Chaos **

After breakfast the three girls walked, with a relatively unenthusiastic slump to their stride, to their History of Magic class. It was definitely the least favourite class amongst students. Professor Binns seemed to have a particular gift for boring his students into profound daydreams.

"Vic!" Victoire quickly spun around only to find two of her younger cousins standing before her, looking nervous and confused.

"Hey Rose! Hi Al!" and in a moment of realization she added, " I forgot to congratulate you guys on making Gryffindor!"

"Thanks. I don't know why I was worried. I always knew deep down I would be in Gryffindor, both mum and dad were. Plus, the Slytherins don't seem as bad as James and Uncle Ron say," Albus said, beaming up at his older cousin. Rose, who had blushed slightly at the mention of Slytherin, spoke in an attempt to change the subject.

"Er... we are kind of lost. Can you tell us where the Potions class room is?"

"It's in the dungeons," Victoire said. And when she saw that their confused expressions did not fade, she continued with directions to the dungeons. A look of relief was shown on their faces and she said, "You two are lucky. You have all of your older family members to help you find your way around. If you need help, you are welcome to ask me or any of the others. I might not trust Fred and James's answers though. When given the opportunity to prank someone, they will take it," Victoire comforted Albus and Rose as she knew very well what they were feeling. On her first day at Hogwarts, she felt a mix of emotions from pure excitement and amazement, to overwhelming confusion. As a look of confidence was evidently expressed on their faces, she said, "Well we have to head off to History of Magic now. I have to warn you, Professor Binns will put you to sleep. That class isn't near Potions, but I think Dominique has a class near the dungeons. If you need directions to your next class, just ask her. Good luck!" and with that, Victoire, Emma and Adalyn left for their first class of the year. "Oh and watch out for Peeves!" she called back at them. She didn't turn to face them, but she could only imagine that their expressions changed from clear confidence to complete bewilderment.

The morning seemed to drag on until the end of time. Victoire was immensely relieved when the lunch bell sounded throughout the castle.

"So where do you want to go?" Emma asked Victoire and Adalyn as they met up after class. The three decided against lunch as they were still full from breakfast and they arrive at the conclusion that they will spend their lunch hour by the lake.

"So Hogsmeade is in the first week of October, right? Can't wait! Even though it's a month away. Vic, you should buy Teddy a gift from there," Victoire was wide-eyed in awareness of the fact that she had a boyfriend. Teddy! With all of the first day commotion occurring at Hogwarts, she hadn't thought about Teddy since the previous evening. She rummaged through her bag and took out a quill and a piece of parchment.

"You're doing your homework now? But we have tons of time to finish it tonight," Adalyn said to Victoire in surprise. But Victoire shook her head and replied, "No, I'm writing a letter to Teddy," the ease of this statement established the fact that she was no longer upset over her detachment from her boyfriend.

_Dear Teddy,_

_Hi Ted, how are you? It's only the afternoon of the first day and it's been pretty hectic. Rose and Al were pretty confused. They needed help finding their Potions class so I told them where it was. They are so lucky! They have me, Dom, Louis, Molly, Lucy, Fred and James (although I wouldn't trust those two) to help them out. And next year Roxy will have all of them (minus myself of course) and the following year Lily and Hugo will have them all. I didn't have any of this since I'm the oldest. Well I did have you. I'm always willing to help them out though. You probably already know, but Rose and Al made Gryffindor! Al and James probably already told you though. They really admire you, you know. Anyways, History of Magic was my first class and almost put me to sleep. Arithmancy, Divination and Herbology were not much better. I really miss you, Ted. I wish you could be here with me. We are getting so much homework this year and the classes are challenging. Well I guess that is all for now. Tell the family I send my love._

_Love, _

_Victoire. _

By the time she had finished her letter, lunch was almost over. Victoire bade farewell to her friends and headed up to the Owlery. She strongly hoped that Dominique or Louis didn't already use Xena to send a letter. There was nothing wrong with the school owls, she just preferred her own.

When she arrived, sure enough she saw her beautiful barn owl, Xena, perched on the highest windowsill and looked as though she was expecting a letter to deliver.

"There you go, Xena. Take this to Teddy Lupin please," Victoire said softly. The owl blinked to demonstrate that she had understood Victoire, then took off on her distant journey. Victoire gazed out the highest window of the highest floor in the Owlery. It was nowhere near the height of the castle; nevertheless, it towered over the grounds of Hogwarts. She looked in admiration at the exquisite scenery that was presented before her. She spent the majority of the past six years here, yet the true beauty of it never fails to impress her.

A bell echoed far in the distance. Victoire moaned at the thought of more excessively boring lectures, difficult class work and the additions to the profusion of homework she already had. This was going to be one long, busy and demanding year ahead of her. However, on the bright side it might take her mind off of the absence of Teddy.


	4. Letters to Teddy

**Chapter Four: Letters to Teddy**

The second half of the day closely mimicked the first half. The classes seemed to be running terribly long, it was as though the first years couldn't believe they were at the legendary school that they had heard countless stories about and Victoire had now received homework from all eight of her classes. A quick and early dinner left her time to complete her homework, or at least she hoped it would. She still had yet to finish her Arithmancy essay by the time she went to bed. Although she was sure she could get it done tomorrow during breakfast. She smiled drowsily to herself as memories of Teddy put her to sleep.

"This is so unfair! Why do we have so much homework? Especially on the first day," Victoire complained the following morning at breakfast. She did not even bother to eat due to the limited time she had to complete her essay.

"NEWTs I suppose," Emma said casually. "You should really eat something, Vic," she added, looking at the table space in front of Victoire that was now covered with the previous night's homework. Victoire suddenly shot the girls a terrifying do-no-disturb-me glare that they had never seen before. It was obvious that she was under a lot of stress.

Before long, ear piercing screeches were heard throughout the Great Hall. The students gazed up as they watched the dozens of owls fly down to deliver the mail to their directed recipients. Victoire's dad's owl, Marshall, soared down the Ravenclaw table dropping letters in front of herself and Dominique, then went over to the Gryffindor table to give Louis his.

Almost immediately after Marshall's delivery, Xena perched herself in front of Victoire. Victoire took the letter as she politely thanked the owl.

"Finally!" she thought. "My day just got a hundred times better."

Victoire decided to open the letter from her parents first, and save Teddy's for last.

_Dear Victoire,_

_Hi sweetie, how was your first day back? Are you getting a lot of homework? I suspect you will. I remember in my 7__th__ year I was barely able to handle it all and I was constantly getting behind. But as long as you keep up, you should be OK. As always, I would like you to look out for your younger siblings and cousins. It is Rose and Al's first year and I suspect they are a little bit frightened so please help them with whatever they need help with. I probably don't even need to tell you this, Vic. You are very responsible as it is. Oh and __please __keep an exceptionally close eye on Fred and James. Those two get into all kinds of trouble. Let Uncle Harry and Uncle George know if they get too excessive with their pranks and "adventures". And make sure that Dominique spends a lot of time studying this year as she has her OWLs coming up. Well, we all really miss you guys and hope that you have a great year ahead of you._

_Love, _

_Mum and Dad_

After she tossed her parent's letter in her bag, she quickly tore open Teddy's envelope, careful not to rip what her boyfriend had written.

_Dear Victoire,_

_I'm doing pretty well. I really do miss you. I miss having dinner with you, talking to you and just seeing you. I can't wait until you come home from Christmas break. It's different without all of you around. I had dinner at the Burrow last night with everyone and it was really quiet as Lily, Hugo and Roxy are the only kids not in Hogwarts yet. But I have to admit, I do sometimes like the quietness. And my Auror job is kind of... boring at the moment. Just tons of paper work. And I know how stressful 7__th__ year can get. Do your homework when you get it and try not to be a procrastinator like myself. And if you can avoid it, don't join many extracurricular activities. This is the best advice I could give you. And Al sent me an owl telling me he was in Gryffindor the same night of the sorting. He's very happy, and he doesn't hate Slytherins anymore! I told him not to listen to James. Anyways, I'm very proud of the kid. Well, I hope to hear from you soon!_

_Love, _

_Teddy xxx_

Over the next several months, Victoire continued to write to Teddy and he continued to write to her. A long distance relationship was proving to be easier than expected.

_September 12__th__, 2017_

_Dear Teddy,_

_So school is going a little better. Not as stressful as the first week as I now have a study plan. As expected, Fred and James are constantly in detention. I haven't seen them do anything over the top yet, which is good. But it's only a matter of time until they do. And Rose and Al know their way around school by now. Nothing new is going on here; it's just the same old. What's new with you?_

_Love,_

_Victoire _

_September 15__th__, 2017_

_Dear Victoire,_

_Harry, Ginny, George and Angelina are definitely concerned about what Fred and James are up to. But they are relieved that you have not contacted them which means all is well. That's good about school. Just stick to your study plan and this year will go by without a problem. Everything here is fine. Lily is _

_getting a bit lonely without Al and James around, but she is always at the joke shop with Hugo and Roxy. Work is going pretty good. Harry says I'll be able to tag along on my first mission soon! As always, I really miss you._

_Love,_

_Teddy xxx_

_September 29__th__, 2017_

_Dear Teddy,_

_Hi Teddy! September just flew by didn't it? Well, we are going to Hogsmeade next weekend. It will be Louis and Fred's first time going, and I know James isn't too excited that his best friend gets to go before him. However, knowing James, I'm sure he will find a way in. Anyways, Fred and Louis will probably bring lots of stuff back for him. But I will keep an eye on Fred and James to make sure they aren't up to no good... again. James seems to have some sort of grudge against the Slytherins, probably house rivalry due to Quidditch. Al does seem to mind them though. I occasionally see him and Rose hanging out with a Slytherin boy. I forget his name though. But he seems nice. Oh and you know my friend Adalyn? Well she is finally dating that Hufflepuff Lucas, who she has had a crush on since year one. Well that's all that's going on here. Talk soon._

_Love,_

_Victoire _

_October 2__nd__, 2017_

_Dear Victoire, _

_Yeah, I can't believe it's already October! I went on my first ever mission yesterday. It was really exciting! We went to North London to catch this guy accused of performing Dark Arts. Doesn't James have that invisibility cloak his dad gave him? Well he may try and sneak into Hogsmeade using that. Just keep an eye on Fred and Louis and see if they are acting... unusually in Hogsmeade. And how are Emma and Adalyn? I haven't spoken to them in a while. Anyways, have fun in Hogsmeade!_

_Love,_

_Teddy xxx_

_October 16__th__, 2017_

_Dear Teddy,_

_It was good to be back in Hogsmeade. I got you something and attached it to this letter. Fortunately, I don't think that James tried to sneak in. But he and Fred did blow up several toilets last week as part of a prank. I didn't want to, but I wrote to their parents and they both received howlers. Good thing not many people were in the Great Hall when they opened them. But they weren't too happy with me for about a week. I think they are good now though. I had a dream about you last night. We were playing Quidditch at the Burrow together. Emma and Addy are doing great! We talk about you a lot. Don't worry; all good things._

_Love,_

_Victoire _

_October 31__st__, 2017_

_Dear Victoire,_

_Happy Halloween! Thanks for the chocolates from Huneydukes. They were very good. I was at Harry and Ginny's house when they got your letter. George was over dropping Roxy off so he got your letter as well. They were not at all happy about it. I think Harry, Ginny, George and Angelina agreed that Fred and James will work full time for one week over Christmas break at the joke shop. They love that store but their parents are making them work behind the scenes at calculating the months profit, etc. Boring stuff. Like every year, we are having a Halloween party at the burrow. I'm dressing up as a goblin. Although being a metamorphmagus, I don't need to do much costume shopping. Lily is going as a Hippogriff and she looks adorable! Anyways, have fun at your feast tonight._

_Love,_

_Teddy xxx_

_November 3__rd__, 2017_

_Dear Teddy,_

_The feast was great! I swore I ate so much I was full for the next two days. I wish I could have seen the kids in their costumes. I bet they were so cute! Er, I don't have much else to say. Oh! On Halloween, James and Fred scared all of the Gryffindor first years half to death and they get one week detention. But _

_good thing that's all they did. Because honestly, I thought they would do more damage as it was Halloween. Well, I miss you lots._

_Love,_

_Victoire _

_November 19__th__, 2017_

_Dear Victoire,_

_We all heard about what James and Fred did on Halloween. Rose and Al wrote to their parents right away. I do believe their parents wrote to James and Fred. I don't think they sent a howler though. Guess what? I finished my one year of Auror training! I am now officially employed in that department. I work under Harry, at a very low rank obviously. I'm spending more time at the Potter's house. I guess it's mostly for Lily. Whenever she's not with Hugo and Roxy, she gets lonely. So I'm here to keep her company and play with her, whenever I can at least. I work a full time job and I still need to visit my grand mum. But I'm over at least 5 times a week so I think she really enjoys having me around. I really, really miss you. Only about a month until you come home. Can't wait! _

_Love,_

_Teddy xxx_

_November 22__nd__, 2017_

_Dear Teddy,_

_Wow, it's almost December already! Time really does fly by. School is still keeping me very busy. Oh, I have some gossip for you. I'm not sure if you find gossip involving 11 year olds interesting, but I'll give it a try. I think Rose has a crush on a Slytherin boy! I think Al said his name is Scorpius Malfoy. I always see Rose, Al and him hanging out together. However, I occasionally see Rose and Scorpius talking "privately" together. Al says that they both like LIKE each other. Rose denies this but I think they are just worried about what their parents will say if they found out, so they aren't telling anyone at the moment. At least that's what Al said. I never met Scorpius's dad so I don't know how he will react, but I know Uncle Ron won't be too happy. Please don't tell anyone I told you this. Well, that's all that's going on here. Miss you._

_Love,_

_Victoire _

_December 11__th__, 2017_

_Dear Victoire,_

_It's almost Christmas! I already got you your gift and I have a feeling that you'll love it. That's very interesting about Rose, and don't worry, I won't tell anyone. Scorpius's dad is Draco Malfoy, he works at the ministry. I occasionally see him. I don't usually associate with him though as we are in different departments. But last week I was with Harry and we ran into Malfoy in the elevator. Not much was said really. Harry and Malfory just said "morning" to each other. They didn't seem like they hated each other, so I don't know why Ron would. Then again, Harry rarely talks about him so there are probably things they aren't telling us. Apparently Malfoy is my second cousin, he was my mum's first. My mum has two sisters but we never associate with them and therefore we never associate with Malfoy. Guess there is a lot of stuff that we don't know. But maybe there's a reason why, so I won't bother asking. Not right now at least. But don't worry, I won't tell anyone about their "relationship". Oh and I forgot to ask you, how is Quidditch going? You haven't mentioned it in any of your letters. Anyways, I can't wait to see you!_

_Love,_

_Teddy xxx_

_December 13__th__, 2017_

_Dear Teddy,_

_It's almost time to come home! I bought your Christmas present at Hogsmeade last weekend and I can't to see your face when you open it. I knew Scorpius's dad was Draco Malfoy. I never met him though. I only know what I hear my aunts and uncles say. Uncle Ron seriously doesn't like this guy but Aunt Hermione and Uncle Harry seem don't think he's alright. But then again, they rarely talk about him. Now that you mention it, I think your right to assume something might have happened between them when they were younger because whenever Draco Malfoy's name is brought up, they try to change the subject. I'm not sure if anyone else has noticed this but don't tell James. He would be determined to find out their history and that will just cause havoc. Oh I forgot to tell you about Quidditch! So our first game was in October. It was Ravenclaw VS Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw won. And there were a bunch of matches after that, but we had one last week and it was Slytherin VS Gryffindor. As always, James was brilliant as chaser. He scored tons of goals. In the end, it was a very close call (thanks to James), but Slytherin won as they caught the snitch. I'm really looking forward to seeing you on the 22__nd__. Only nine more days!_

_Love,_

_Victoire _

**AUTHORS NOTE:**

**Sorry I uploaded this chapter again. I was just reading it over and found lots of spelling mistakes and I hate spelling mistakes :p **

**Im sure there are more throughout the story but I don't feel like fixing them all lol. There were just a lot in this chapter.**

**Anyways, one more to go! What will happen with their relationship when they see each other for Christmas? I'll try to update tomorrow :) **


	5. Home for the Holidays

**Chapter Five: Home for the Holidays **

Victoire spent the next nine days highly anticipating her return home. She could not believe how long each day seemed to be. Teddy was the only subject on her mind. Even her school lessons that she had learned managed to hide behind the only topic that flooded her mind and invaded her subconscious. She could not help but feel an overwhelming surge of excitement to see her deeply missed boyfriend.

The Hogwarts express was decorated with various seasonal decorations that enriched the Christmas spirit. Red and green streamers hung from the conventional ceiling of the train, brightly lit lights boarded the frames of the compartment doors, the candy trolley now had all Christmas themed snacks and the well known seasonal music travelled eloquently throughout the express. And on top of all of the materialistic improvements, every individual student was charged with cheerful energy that added completion to the Christmas spirit.

The train came to a slow halt and hundreds of excited children began exiting onto the equally decorated platform. By the time all nine of the Weasley and Potter kids bade farewell to their friends and met up with each other, the majority of the parents and kids had left.

"There they are!" a young female voice, which was recognizable Lily's, squealed delightfully when she spotted her siblings and cousins. Before Victoire had time to turn her attention in the direction in which the noise was coming from, three small bodies were sprinting towards them.

"Lily, Hugo, Roxy! How are you? We missed you guys," Victoire said enthusiastically. The three children beamed at them, clearly thrilled at the reuniting of their family.

"Good, it was really boring without you guys around though," Lily replied truthfully.

Victoire looked past the children and saw the rest of her family standing in the distance, next to the platform barrier. There stood her parents, uncle Harry, Aunt Ginny, Uncle Ron, Aunt Hermione, Uncle Percy, Aunt Audrey, Uncle George and Aunt Angelina. However, Teddy was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Teddy?" She asked the concern in her voice evident.

"Er..." this question obviously put Lily in an awkward position.

"He's working. He's really busy," Roxanne quickly added, a sense of panic sounded in her words.

Victoire knew that Roxanne was not telling the truth. She may be George's daughter, but she was not the best at lying. Victoire knew Teddy and even if he was busy with work, he would have spared a couple of hours to meet his girlfriend at the train station. They loved each other.

She frowned, attempting with great force to hold back her tears. They all strolled towards their parents, preparing for the abundance of greetings that awaited them. Before long, they were ushered into tight, suffocating hugs from their parents, aunts and uncles.

"Mum, please! You're acting like we were gone for years," Fred exclaimed, his voice muffled in his mother's shirt.

"I'm sorry! We just missed you kids so much. So how is school going?" Angelina asked the children, who looked exhausted from the intense greetings.

"It's alright. Sorry we were late. We had to wait for Rose to say goodbye to her _boyfriend_," James teased and his cousin's face suddenly resembled one of the Gryffindor house colours. Besides her obvious embarrassment, she glared at James and said, "He's not my _boyfriend_ James! He's just a friend! He's Al's friend too."

"Yes, but I don't see Al alone with him in a dimly lit corridor almost every night."

"Rose Weasley! Who is this boy that you have been sneaking around the castle at night with?" Ron said, his temper slowly rising.

"Dad calm down! He's a friend of mine and Al's. And we are not –"

"He's some blond Slytherin kid in year one," James interrupted. "Her and _Malfoy_ have been with each other since the first day," it was now apparent that James was trying to anger his younger cousin.

"JAMES SIRIUS POTTER!" James was taken aback by her sudden, overwhelmingly loud outburst. "WHY CAN'T YOU JUST SHIT UP? WE ARE JUST FRIENDS, NOTHING MORE! AND EVEN IF WE WERE, IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS. WHY SHOULD YOU CARE?"

"Calm down Rosie. I'm just stating what I saw. Anyways, I don't –"

"James, just stop it. Why do you always have to do this? Don't forget, you and Fred are still punished. Do you want to extend your punishment?" Ginny warned. Her warning proved to be successful as James innocently bowed his head and said, "Sorry mum. Sorry Rose."

"Dad? I'm –" Rose began, looking at the stress in her father's eyes.

"We'll discuss this when we get home, Rose. We are all going to grandma and grandpa's house for dinner," Ron explained to her as well as his nieces and nephews.

"That's right. We better get going. We don't want to be late or grandma won't be too happy with us," Percy said. The other adults nodded in agreement and the twenty-two Weasleys left the station, the children excitedly discussing their previous experiences at school and their upcoming holiday. With the exception of Rose, who was left in a miserable state and continuously scowling at James. When they exited to the parking lot, the five families separated to their own vehicles and headed to the Burrow where a great feast awaited them.

"Mum? Dad? Where is Teddy?" Victoire asked when they entered the car. This question has been bothering her ever since she got off the train. Even James and Rose's argument wasn't enough to distract her from her anxious thoughts about Teddy.

"He's very busy, Vic. He wasn't able to come," the simplicity in her father's voice gave her the impression that he did not care. In fact, it didn't seem like any of her family cared that this was gnawing at her very core.

For the entire car ride Victoire remained silent. Her brother and sister were delightfully discussing their adventures at Hogwarts with their parents. She envied her family's happiness. Why didn't Teddy show up? She had been looking forward to this day every since their departure in September.

They were the last to arrive at the Burrow. Victoire thought there was something peculiar about the situation that was presented before her. Her whole family, with the exception of her grandparents, stood shivering outside in a temperature that was perfectly capable of freezing a scorching glass of butterbeer.

"Our parents won't let us inside," Fred explained to Victoire, Dominique and Louis when they entered the huddled group. He turned back to the adults and whined, "Come on, we're _dying_ out here!"

"Sorry guys, but we had to wait until everyone arrived," George said, and all of the children gave an unwelcoming glare at Victoire and her family. "And now that we're all here..." George substituted the remainder of his words with a knock on the door. The sound of Molly Weasley's voice invited them inside and the children breathed a great sigh of relief.

Although that sigh of relief was quickly replaced by a herd of surprised expressions and unexpected gasps. The burrow had been transformed into a true winter wonderland. The ceiling had been bewitched to make it appear as if snowflakes were descending upon them, a beautifully decorated Christmas tree stood proud and tall in the center of the living room, and various impressive decorations infested the house. Many of them were magically enchanted. A decorative ice rink sat on the coffee table and two small penguins, undoubtedly in love, skated side by side around the rink. However, the thing that really caught them off guard was an enormous banner that hung over the entrance to the Burrow and as they opened the door it chanted, "Welcome home! Welcome home! Christmas is here! You were gone for so long, but now let's go cheer!" The burrow has always been augmented with the Christmas spirit at this time of year but this was unusual even for the Weasleys. And it was clear that Victoire was not the only one thinking this as Lucy piped up, "Grandma, this all looks wonderful! But I don't understand. What is so different about this year?"

"Well, dear, there is nothing particularly special about this year. It's a combination of things really. It's Victoire's last year at school and Rose and Al's first, we were blessed with a very white Christmas this year and I read about various decorating ideas in _Witch Weekly_" Molly replied. She then turned her attention to Victoire and said, "I think there is a present for you waiting up stairs. You should go see what it is."

Victoire was slightly confused, but she proceeded in the direction of the stairs. When she arrive there, more amazement rushed over her. The wooden stairs were covered in a pure, white blanket of snow. However, the snow was just an allusion because when Victoire stepped on it, she could only feel the hard wood on her socked feet. Icicles (which also proved to be an allusion) and Christas lights, in the colours of white and blue, hung from the railing and lead all the way up to the top flood. Victoire was about halfway up the stairs when her heart melts with compassion. There he stood, on the highest step, smiling down at her. She sprinted up the remaining steps and flung herself around Teddy.

"Surprise!" the enthusiasm in his voice made Victoire realize that he had missed her just as much as she had missed him. She remained in his arms for the next several minutes.

"This is for you. You can open it now or at Christmas," Teddy said as he handed her a neatly wrapped present. It wasn't big, but she felt the burning urge to open it at that moment. She tore apart the paper faster than was probably necessary. She opened a small box and her eyes widened in astonishment. It was a magnificent gold necklace that read, in beautiful cursive writing, "_Remember that I will always love you - Teddy"._

"And when you start to miss me, the message will change to '_We will see each other soon, I promise'_," tears of delight filled her eyes as she passionately kissed him.

"Oh, Teddy! This is beautiful! I got off the train and I didn't see you waiting for me. Roxy and my dad said you were too busy to come. I was so upset," it was clear that Victoire was immensely relieved to see her boyfriend.

"They knew where I was and they couldn't tell you because it would ruin the surprise. Vic, I'm sorry I worried you. I want you to know that I'm never too busy for you," Teddy said. Victoire took a deep breath and smiled, her eyes glistening with the remaining tears. She gazed into the stunning, vibrant eyes that smiled back at her, and said softly, "I know".

**Authors Note:**

**Okay so I'm done :) The end. Sorry I made James seem like such a jerk. He really isn't, I really like James. He can just be annoying sometimes lol. Anyways, hope you enjoyed it. I'll try an get another story up soon :)**


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